you are here

Imagine you are on a long-planned, long-awaited vacation in a foreign country. You have a limited amount of time to visit the sites you want to see and, while you’re watching your budget, you have built in extra to splurge on something special should the opportunity arise. All goes as planned and you return home safe and happy with great memories.

And imagine you are in line at the coffee shop, grocery store, newsstand, movies, sporting event, cafeteria or any place you regularly frequent as part of your at-home life. You have a limited amount of time, you’ve planned what it is you want to get or do or see, and you’ve stuck to your budget although once in a while you splurge on something a little extra but you can afford it. All goes as planned during your day and you return home safe and happy.

And with great memories?

Why is it so hard to enjoy our day-to-day life?

Wherever you go, there you are. No matter where you go, you can’t leave one thing behind – you. So flip this thought experiment on its head and take a visit to your life. Behave as if you were a tourist. Imagine it all as new. It once was, you know.

Marvel at some architectural charm that you’ve underestimated or overlooked. Smell the aromas coming from the shops or restaurants. Listen to all the languages or conversations that you hear as you pass by and wonder who those people are. What are their lives like? How different is it for them to go home at night than it is for you? Or how much alike? Taste your regular order of food or drink at your favorite coffee shop or restaurant as if you’d never had it before. Feel the steering wheel in your hand and the tires on the road. Or the smoothness of the wooden handrail in the building. Or the resistance of the sidewalk or road or jogging path beneath your shoes.

It's true. Wherever you go, there you are. So, engage! Pay attention! Have some fun! Live your life fully present and find moments to remember, to enjoy and laugh over. Find ways to cherish all that you already have.

Right now.

No effort.

You are already here. 

©  2025 www.megreilly360.com

4/28/2025